THERE’S nothing quite like your first AFL win in brown and gold.

Kieran Lovell had to wait until his second match, after his debut ended in defeat against GWS Giants, with the Hawks overcoming Richmond by 46 points on Friday night at the MCG.

“It’s a much better feeling this time, all the boys are so up and about after a win,” Lovell said after his second game.

“We had a pretty relaxed week at the club (after the loss) and came into this game really keen to bounce back.

“Our hunt was a lot better this week, our will to win was really good and we just ground it all.”

The 18-year-old midfielder, recruited with pick 22 in last year’s NAB AFL Draft, was a late inclusion for injured star Sam Mitchell (corked calf).

If anything, it may have helped his performance.

Lovell finish with 18 disposals, five clearances and six inside-50s, displaying plenty of positive

“I got the call at 10.30 in the morning – it was sort of a good thing, I didn’t have to worry about the build up,” he said.

“I think I played a bit better this week than last week. I was happier that I had a more consistent effort over the four quarters.

“I’ll hopefully keep improving as I play games and keep learning from the senior players and coaches.”

Lovell has already earned comparisons with Mitchell – the man he replaced on Friday night.

But with no Mitchell – or Jarryd Roughead, Luke Hodge or James Frawley – it was the Hawks’ next generation which was forced to take on more responsibility against the Tigers.

“Obviously those guys are pretty hard to replace, so it takes a lot of guys playing a little bit better and stepping up a bit,” Lovell said.

“The younger guys played really well tonight, T.O., Howey, Sis and KB, which was good to see.”